Individual Learner Differences

Psychological factors
These are divided into three principal types.

Cognitive factors are those that influence the processing, storing, and retrieval of information. The
cognitive factor that has attracted the most attention in SLA is language aptitude. It mostly includes,

 Language aptitude; is the special ability for learning a second language. It is considered to be at
least partly separate from general intelligence i.e. phonemic coding ability, grammatical
sensitivity, inductive language-learning ability, and rote-learning ability (Carroll 1965).
 Intelligence; is a general sort of aptitude that is not limited to a specific performance area but is
transferable to many sorts of performance. H. Gardner (1993) proposed that there are multiple
intelligences (for example, mathematical intelligence, spatial intelligence, and linguistic
intelligence).

Conative factors influence the learner’s ability to establish a goal and maintain effort to achieve it. In
SLA, the key conative factor is motivation,

 Motivation; motivation is a complex construct that involves the reasons or goals learners have for
learning a second language, it may be extrinsic or intrinsic.

Affective factors determine whether people respond positively or negatively to specific situations. For
example, learners may vary in the extent, to which they experience language anxiety. Different types of
anxiety have been identified,

 Trait anxiety; a characteristic of a learner’s personality.

 State anxiety; is experienced at a particular moment in response to a definite situation.
 Situation-specific anxiety: the anxiety aroused by a particular type of situation.

Language Aptitude
Language aptitude is traditionally viewed as a ‘special talent’ for language learning. Learners who
possess these abilities, who are able to use them appropriately in the learning situations they find
themselves, and who are motivated to do so are likely to achieve a high level of proficiency in a second
language. Language aptitude is not the same as intelligence.

Carroll’s Model of Language Aptitude (Modern Language Aptitude Test MLAT):

His research in the 1950s was directed at designing tests that would indicate which learners were likely to
be successful in terms of how rapidly they could learn a second language. His method of enquiry was to
develop a series of tests and then select those tests that correlated most strongly with measures of L2
proficiency. The MLAT was designed to predict which learners would be successful when taught by the
pattern-drilling method of language teaching popular at that time.
  Phonemic coding ability; the ability to code unfamiliar sounds in a way that they can be
remembered later.
 Grammatical sensitivity; the ability to recognize the grammatical functions of words in sentences.
 Inductive language-learning ability; the ability to identify patterns of correspondence and
relationships between form and meaning.
 Rote-learning ability; the ability to form and remember associations between L1 and L2
vocabulary items.

Skehan Model of Language Aptitude:

Skehan (2002) proposed a model of language aptitude that links different components to four macro
stages in the process of language acquisition:

1. Noticing (the relevant abilities are those involved in processing input, Learner directs attention at
some specific feature in the input).
2. Patterning (involves analytic ability, Learner constructs a hypothesis (implicitly or explicitly)
about the feature, subsequently extends the domain of the hypothesis before recognizing its
limitations and restructuring it and integrating).
3. Controlling (involves those abilities associated with controlling existing L2 knowledge, Learner
is able to use the integrated feature with increasing ease and accuracy)
4. Lexicalizing (involves the memory abilities associated with converting rule-based knowledge into
ready-made chunks that facilitate easy communication. Learner is now able to produce the feature
as a ‘lexicalized element’ (i.e. it is accessed as a whole rather than by applying a rule).

Motivation
Motivation is a complex construct that involves the reasons or goals learners have for learning a second
language, it may be extrinsic or intrinsic. Without any motivation or positive attitude, there can hardly be
a successful process of learning. Like language aptitude, motivation is a complex construct. It involves:

1. The reasons a learner has for needing or wanting to learn an L2 (i.e. motivational orientation).
2. The effort a learner makes to learn the L2, the learner’s persistence with the learning task, and the
impact immediate context has on these (i.e. behavioral motivation).
3. The effect that the learner’s evaluation of his/her progress has on subsequent learning behavior
(i.e. attributional motivation).

Brown (1981, according to Ellis, 1985) identifies the following types of motivation,

 Global motivation; which consists of a general orientation to the goal of learning a foreign
language.
 Situational motivation; which varies according to the situation in which learning takes place.
 Task motivation; which is the motivation for performing particular learning tasks.
 Researchers also differentiate between:
 Integrative motivation; learners wish to identify with the target ethno linguistic group (although
this is far more significant in second than in foreign language acquisition),
  Instrumental motivation; learners study to improve their social status or meet educational
requirements.

Personality
Personality of the learner is another controversial matter being considered a factor influencing foreign
language acquisition. A widely-held belief claims that extroverted learners learn more rapidly and are
more successful than introverted learners.

Similarly, social skills and inhibition are considered segments of one’s personality possibly influencing
foreign language acquisition; however, research findings about their actual effect are rather controversial.

Language Anxiety

Language anxiety is the anxiety that results from learners’ emotional responses to the learning conditions
they experience in a specific situation. It differs from, but is related to, trait anxiety (i.e. the learner’s
overall tendency to be anxious as a result of their personality).

Much of the research has focused on the sources of language anxiety. Bailey (1983) analyzed the diaries
of 11 learners and found that they tended to become anxious when they compared themselves with other
learners in the class and found themselves less proficient. Other sources of anxiety include being asked to
communicate spontaneously in the second language, fear of negative evaluation, and tests.

MacIntyre and Gardner (1991) hypothesized that anxiety can affect the different stages of the learning
process:

 The input stage (i.e. when learners encounter material for the first time).
 The processing stage (i.e. when they make connections between the new information and existing
knowledge).
 The output stage (i.e. when they demonstrate the new knowledge).

Sheen (2008) showed that anxiety can affect the learners’ ability to process input. She found that the low-
anxiety learners were much more likely to repair their errors following recasts and consequently learn
from them. High anxiety, then, can impede learning because it interferes with the learners’ ability to
process input in their working memory.

Learning styles and strategies

Learning style is a “general approach to language learning”. The ways the learner applies while studying
are called learning techniques. Learning strategies are “specific actions, behaviours, steps, or techniques
students use often consciously to improve their progress in apprehending, internalizing, and using the
L2”. Some learning styles are following,

 Analytical (field independent); students who concentrate on grammatical details but feel less safe
in communicative activities. They tend to learn the rules and principles of a language and do not
like improvisation or taking guesses if an unfamiliar language situation occurs.
  Global (field dependent); students who are more sociable, like interaction and communication.
They are not keen on grammatical rules and often use compensation strategies2 to avoid blocks in
communication.
 Visual; students who prefer to use their sight to receive information.
 Auditory; students who prefer to use their hearing to receive information.
 Kinesthetic; students who need active movement and involvement to learn.
 Tactile; students who like handling objects and use their touch to receive information.

Age
One of the most obvious ways in which second language learners differ is in terms of their starting age.
Some learners start learning a second language in early childhood while many others have to wait till they
go to school (often secondary school). The study of the influence that learners’ starting age has on L2
acquisition is motivated by both theoretical and practical considerations.

A common assumption is that children are better language learners than adults and that, therefore,
learners will be more successful if they start learning a second language when they are young.

Critical Period Hypothesis

Critical Period Hypothesis (CPH), first proposed by Penfield and Roberts (1959). The hypothesis states
that there is a period (typically defined as the period up to the onset of puberty) during which learners can
acquire a second language easily and implicitly and achieve native-speaker competence, but after which
L2 acquisition becomes more difficult and is rarely entirely successful.

Theoretical importance of the CPH The theoretical importance of the CPH lies in the fact that it supports
Chomsky’s (1965) view of language. Chomsky argued that children are equipped with a language
acquisition device an innate, biologically-given capacity for learning language that is distinct from other
cognitive abilities. This device according to Chomsky contains knowledge of the linguistic universals that
underlie the grammatical rules of every language because children have access to these universals they
are able to master the grammar of their mother tongue.